By Rep. Jeff Helfrich, The Mountain Times
In today’s world, it’s easy to find yourself caught up in what might be missing. Social media shows us what everyone else has, often leaving us wondering how we can have it too. However, by being so plugged in, we can often overlook the many wonderful things that are right in front of us.
As we find ourselves in the middle of the holiday season, I want to encourage you to take a moment, as I recently did, to reflect on what you might be thankful for.
The first thing I am very grateful for is my family. My wife and my two kids are my everything. I have been blessed with an incredible family who has supported me through my many tough campaigns. They have stood by my side and for that I can never thank them enough.
The recent loss of my father brought into perspective just how valuable every moment is with your loved ones and how important it is to make the most out of your time with them. Secondly, I am incredibly grateful for the honor of having been elected to serve the people of House District 52 as their State Representative. I have spent my whole life in public service in different capacities (from the armed forces to law enforcement to local boards), and having been elected to continue that work is a great honor. In my time in the legislature, we have accomplished some incredible things, from recriminalizing hard drugs to passing meaningful campaign finance reform (something many thought was years away). Getting to be the voice of my community in Salem is a privilege, and I thank the voters for it.
Recently, while thinking on these two things, I made the difficult decision to not seek reelection as the House Republican Leader. Being chosen as Leader a little over a year ago by my colleagues was an incredible honor, but it came with many long days away from my family and home. I missed out on opportunities to stop in on local city council meetings and community conversations. We have an important legislative session in front of us that will have to tackle many critical issues. Notably our district needs major upgrades in transportation infrastructure, and I believe this move allows me to focus my full attention on advocating for those needs without sacrificing time with my family.
In closing, during this holiday season I encourage you to take a moment to reflect on all you might be thankful for. Unplug from your devices that keep our attention 24/7 and look at the lights going up in our community. Attend a local show and take in the beauty of this part of our great nation. We live in a truly unique and wondrous place and for that too I am thankful.
As always, you can reach me at Rep.JeffHelfrich@oregonlegislature.gov or 503-986-1452. My office and I would love to hear from you.